Posted by Stephen Tignor, TENNIS.com
The tours can't win.
Just as they're staging their big-money year-end championships -- the top eight women are in Madrid right now and the top eight men face off in Shanghai next week -- the tennis headlines are filled with scandal. There's match-fixing on the men's side, cocaine on the women's, and now possible poisoning in Davis Cup.
Who says this game isn't exciting?
Let's leave the juicy stuff behind and concentrate on the men's finale for now. No other event squeezes so much high-quality tennis into a single week. The heady atmosphere typically brings out the best in the boys. Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal staged the fiercest contest of their rivalry last year in the semis here. What can we expect from each player next week?
Roger Federer: He is 22-2 in the Masters Cup, with three titles, including last year's. His group consists of Fernando Gonzalez, Andy Roddick and Nikolay Davydenko. Federer's combined record against these three is 34-1. I think he's going to make the semis.
Rafael Nadal: The top seed in the other group has Novak Djokovic, David Ferrer and Richard Gasquet. Nadal lost to Djokovic twice on hard courts this year and went down to Ferrer at the U.S. Open. But the Spaniard got his act together in Paris last week and will want to prove that he, rather than Djokovic, is the real No. 2.
Novak Djokovic: He has looked a little burned out this fall, but he's saved his best for the big tournaments in 2007, having reached at least the semifinals of the last three majors. Whatever happens against Nadal, you have to like him against Ferrer and Gasquet.
Nikolay Davydenko: The Russian might not know which end of the court is up by now. Since being mentioned in connection with a possible match-fixing scheme, he's been scolded not just by the ATP, but by a chair umpire in Paris. He may just want the season to end at this point.
Andy Roddick: There have been rumors about Roddick skipping this event to keep himself healthy for the Davis Cup final. He's in the draw for now, with Federer, Davydenko and Gonzalez. Fed aside, this is as good a spot as any for him. Roddick hasn't lost a set to Davydenko in four matches and has won four of the last five times against Gonzo.
David Ferrer: It's nice to see the no-frills Spanish grinder rewarded with his first appearance in Shanghai. He's played a lot of tennis this year, but that's just what he does. The relatively quick indoor surface won't be to his liking, but he beat both Nadal and Gasquet, two of his round-robin opponents, the last time they played.
Fernando Gonzalez: A year that started so promisingly -- yes, it was this year that he reached the Australian Open -- turned into a long, up-and-down slog over the last 10 months. Gonzo wasn't happy in Paris, where he did his best to blow his spot here.
Richard Gasquet: A surprise participant, Gasquet snuck in with a solid fall. It's good for the game to have this young Frenchman representing the elite. Successful or not, he'll bring his distinctive style to the tournament. Let's hope it's something build on.
Semfinals: Federer def. Nadal; Djokovic def. Roddick
Final: Federer defeats Djokovic.
